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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. capital — a city
  9. file — a line of people
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a great time
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. spring — the season
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. file — a tool
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. spring — of water
  20. cell — a phone
  21. capital — money
  22. spring — a coil
  23. file — a document
  24. toast — bread

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com